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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24740257">we did not give up on love today</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/inlovewithimpossibility/pseuds/inlovewithimpossibility'>inlovewithimpossibility</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Arrow (TV 2012)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Crisis on Infinite Earths Crossover Event (CW DC TV Universe), F/M, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Fix-It, Fluff and Angst, Inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice (Ancient Greek Religion &amp; Lore)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 03:54:41</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>10,988</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24740257</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/inlovewithimpossibility/pseuds/inlovewithimpossibility</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>But if there’s one thing that seven years fighting on a team of vigilantes and heroes has taught Felicity, it’s that you can never accept the outcome as it’s told to you. You have to fight, you have to hope, and you have to believe that as long as you have each other, things will turn out right in the end. </p><p>So screw the Book of Oa. Felicity's never really been one to believe in destiny anyway.</p><p>[a s8-fix-it fic using elements drawn from the myth of orpheus]</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Oliver Queen/Felicity Smoak</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>55</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>186</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>we did not give up on love today</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hi everyone! Welcome to my 100th Arrow fic! </p><p>That is crazy to even think of! I've been writing fic for almost 10 years and I have never written so much fic for a single fandom. Thank you so much if you have read and enjoyed any of my stories, I sincerely hope you enjoy this one as well! I wanted to write something that combined all the elements that I love to write that also felt like a celebration of what I love about the show. So this is what I've come up with, I sincerely hope you enjoy and please let me know if you do by leave a kudos and/or comment!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>“Felicity Smoak, this is our only hope.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Felicity sighs as the Monitor calls out to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She honestly has no patience for the godlike being anymore. After taking Oliver away from their family, allowing him to die after months of using him a lacky, and then forcing Felicity into helping him as well.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But he failed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The entire multiverse is gone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Almost everyone Felicity has ever known or loved is dead. Her parents, the team, </span>
  <em>
    <span>William and Mia…</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>So, she really does not have time for the tall imposing man-god with weird chevron-like growths sticking out of his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She’s already done what it is he asked of her. She found Outkast, she located the Book of Oa, risked her life and sanity to read it whilst exposing herself to devastating truths about the future.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And then she had to wait, despondent in a pocket dimension with the man who failed to do his only job in the entire multiverse as she knew her friends, family, and </span>
  <em>
    <span>children </span>
  </em>
  <span>were being wiped from existence.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And that’s just the start of the reasons she doesn’t have the patience to deal with the being whose one job was to prevent that from happening.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Felicity Smoak.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The Monitor’s voice calls out again, clearly more agitated than before and Felicity huffs, turning around to face him. She doesn’t know where she was walking to anyway, there’s literally nowhere for her to go seeing as the entire multiverse is gone.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You know, I have a hard time believing the whole ‘only hope’ thing seeing as you said the exact same thing about the previous three plans and all of them ended up with someone I love dead or as good as.” Felicity whirls around to face him, her eyes narrowing and her jaw squaring as she regards him with contempt.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The destruction of the multiverse was what I was trying to avoid.” The Monitor answers her, his voice annoying level as he faces her with the same impassive expression as always.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah well, for someone with godlike powers, you’re not the best at doing things, are you? You just recruit innocent people to do them for you.” Felicity retorts with a roll of her eyes. If she doesn’t argue, she’ll cry, and she’s cried enough tears in the past week that she’s not too sure she has water left in her body.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Felicity Smoak, this is not the time to argue. This is the time of action.” The Monitor replies but just as he finishes, the ground shakes violently and there’s an incredibly loud noise that sounds distinctly like a sob.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Felicity immediately bends to stabilize herself, her hands flying out and her core tightening as she desperately tries to stay on her feet. After a short moment, the earthquake-like shock lessens and Felicity takes a deep breath, standing up straight again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What was that?” She questions, looking over at the Monitor who is frowning deeply.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your husband is drowning under the weight of the Spectre’s memory.” He replies simply and Felicity freezes, her mind spinning.</span>
</p><p><span>“That was </span><em><span>Oliver?” </span></em><span>She questions incredulously, blown away that something of a seismic nature could have been caused by her husband. She knows that he’s taken on the divine powers of the Spectre but it’s still baffling to think that he could cause something so intense.</span> <span>“Is he okay?”</span></p><p>
  <span>“He needs to get himself under control else this plan will not work.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well he’s just had the soul of a being as old as the universe itself inserted into his body, I think we can give him a little slack, no?” Felicity scoffs with a roll of her eyes. Her concern for Oliver morphs into agitation towards Novu for his complete and utter lack of empathy. Yet again, he’s placing Oliver in a position of vulnerability to make up for his own mistake and has no concept of how difficult that is for Oliver.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Felicity Smoak, if your husband does not get control, he will perish forever and the multiverse will remain a shadow in our memories. Your children will remain dead and the memory of anything inhabiting this galaxy will die with you and your friends.” The Monitor continues in his impassive voice, staring at Felicity blankly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The blonde sighs heavily.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Like everything they’ve faced in the past year, this is huge. Birth of a multiverse, saving the entire world and their children along with it huge. She wonders when this might stop, when Oliver will finally be able to catch a break.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But then she remembers what she foresaw in the Book of Oa.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>If things go as they should, if Oliver finds the strength within himself and he and the paragons respark the multiverse, Felicity knows he still won’t get the rest he desires. Sure, a paradise dimension where he can live out eternity in peace seems nice on paper but Felicity knows her husband. He’s never wanted immortality or to be adored by the masses. All he cares about is their family and to know that at the end of this all, they’re facing yet more separation and their children not getting to grow up with a father makes it all seem sacrificial.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But if there’s one thing that seven years fighting on a team of vigilantes and heroes has taught Felicity, it’s that you can never accept the outcome as it’s told to you. You have to fight, you have to hope, and you have to believe that as long as you have each other, things will turn out right in the end.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>So screw the Book of Oa. Felicity's never really been one to believe in destiny anyway.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Let me help him.” She asks the Monitor, squaring her shoulders and standing as tall as she can.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It is not possible.” He counters just as quickly, shaking his head, but Felicity stays strong. She knows she can help him, she just needs the Monitor to get her to him. She can do the rest.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, it is. You get me to him and I will help him gain control.” She remains unwavering, crossing her arms as she stares down the godlike being. She knows she’s right and she won’t be dismissed in the way he’s dismissed her and her family before.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Not now. Not when so much rides on this.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It is not so simple. In order for this to work, your husband must accept the Spectre as a part of him. Reminding him of his most mortal connection, his love for you, will only make him cling to the memories of Oliver Queen more.” The Monitor attempts to reason but Felicity just rolls her eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Bullshit.” She counters immediately and the Monitor’s face warps into an uncharacteristically confused frown as he looks at her. He’s clearly taken aback and Felicity knows from that alone that he’s been dismissing her out of her hand since he first fetched her to help him locate Outkast.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Pardon?” He questions but Felicity just shrugs her shoulders. She knows she has the upper hand here, that she’s right. She’s seen the Book of Oa, she knows the intimate details of how the Spectre works and she won’t allow that to be thrown back in her face when she’s trying to save the multiverse and her husband alike.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Complete and utter bullshit. You forget I’ve seen your precious book, understood it and all that it encloses. The Spectre’s mortality is the most important part of its being. There’s a reason it chooses to inhabit humans and not immortal beings like yourself. Oliver needs to remember who </span>
  <em>
    <span>he </span>
  </em>
  <span>is before he can fully accept the Spectre.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Despite her anxiety growing at the thought of Oliver, still suffering and struggling to find himself under the weight of an immortal being’s presence, Felicity forces herself to remain calm and collected. Over eight years, she hasn’t taken any of </span>
  <em>
    <span>Oliver’s</span>
  </em>
  <span> bullshit and she’s certainly not going to start backing down by beginning with a godlike being who can’t do his own job.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It is still not as simple as you think it is. Oliver Queen is currently trapped in the timeline of his own memories with the other paragons tumbling through them as well. Make one wrong move and we may eradicate an entire portion of his memories or expel the Spectre from his being. Then the future that you foresaw within the Book of Oa will never occur and the multiverse will remain a distant memory.” The Spectre speaks in his usual monotonous tone but Felicity merely shakes her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And if we don’t try, the multiverse remains gone and my husband dies all over again. I </span>
  <em>
    <span>won’t </span>
  </em>
  <span>let it happen but if you won’t help me, I’ll just find another way.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With that, she turns on her heel and begins to walk in the opposite direction. She has no idea where she’s going considering they’re in a pocket dimension and the rest of the multiverse no longer exists but if the Monitor won’t help her, she needs to be away from him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wait.” He suddenly calls out and Felicity stops in her tracks, turning to face him with an unimpressed raised eyebrow. He sighs, though the movement looks incredibly odd considering his outfit, and nods his head. “There are rules.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Felicity feels her heart jump with elation at the triumph, though she doesn’t show it on her face. “There always are.” She comments as she steps back towards him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The timeline will appear as if a long corridor. You cannot delve into any of the memories lining it. To do so would be suicide for both you and the multiverse.” The Monitor begins and Felicity nods, storing the note in the back of her mind.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No swimming in the memory pool, got it.” She repeats simply, feeling slightly gleeful at the clearly agitated pull of the Monitor’s jaw.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Your husband will need him to guide you through his memories, back towards the light. The most important thing is that you must not touch.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Excuse me?” Felicity blinks, her brow furrowing as she processes the Monitor’s words.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If the two of you touch, his transformation into the Spectre will not work.” The godlike being answers simply and Felicity’s brain scrambles as she tries to figure out the logic behind that.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How does that even work?” She questions, unable to come up with </span>
  <em>
    <span>any </span>
  </em>
  <span>reason why touching would inhibit Oliver’s full ascension to the Spectre.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“If you do not comply with this rule, your husband will be merely as he was before the Spectre inhabited him. I don’t believe I need to remind you that means he will be…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Dead.” Felicity finishes for the Monitor as he trails off. Her heart sinks with the word. The wound of his passing is still so fresh, she hasn’t had any time to process it with everything that’s been going on. She prays that she won’t have to, that she can find a way to change things and they will be together with their family once more. It’s that thought that has her relenting, nodding her head reluctantly. “Fine, okay, no touching. Like a Catholic school high school dance.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good. Now you must be aware of your surroundings, Felicity Smoak. You do not want to get lost in there with him.” The Monitor warns as he turns to open the portal and Felicity nods, hurrying over to stand next to him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah, okay, okay. Just get me to him.” Felicity tells him, urging him to open the portal. He sighs and does so, calling out to Felicity as she walks through.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Take heed, remember the warnings! You’ll know what to do when you reach the light.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Felicity nods her head, jolting when the portal shuts behind her, leaving her in what resembles a long black corridor. Looking both ways, it doesn’t seem to stop, continuing on for what looks like eternity. The only thing lighting the way are the glowing scenes that line the sides of the path Felicity stands on. In screaming color, with a haze that immediately invokes a nostalgia within her, Felicity knows instinctively that she is looking at Oliver’s memories.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>These aren’t any she’s experienced herself, she supposes they’re far too deep for that. She can’t help but smile as she watches a version of Oliver, who cannot be older than five or six, run around the garden of Queen Mansion. He’s being chased by who she supposes is Tommy and she spots Raisa in the background, watching the two boys with an affectionate smile on her face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As she turns, she sees more memories of the same kind. Cooking in the kitchen with Raisa, Oliver’s father reading to him, his mother gently brushing his hair back and kissing his small forehead. Felicity feels a tug at her heart as she takes the scenes in. To see the concrete evidence that her husband, whose life has been plagued with suffering and pain, had such a happy childhood, it brings an extremely bittersweet warmth into her heart.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Suddenly, the ground shakes as it had in the pocket dimension and Felicity winces as she once again bends low to prevent herself from falling. The sound of sobbing starts once more as well, but it’s louder now and Felicity follows it, heading down the corridor. The memories begin to fade, less bright as she regresses through the years of Oliver’s life until she comes to a stop, her heart breaking at the sight she sees before her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There, hunched on the floor in front of an almost translucent memory of being rocked to sleep as a baby by his mother, is Oliver.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His legs are pulled up into his chest and his old Arrow suit, the one from his first year as ‘the Hood’ is sat loosely on his body. His entire being is shaking with sobs and Felicity suspects it is that which is causing the seismic waves, the power within him attached to his emotions.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He looks so small, so vulnerable and scared, and it takes everything within Felicity to not rush over and wrap him in her arms. Instead, she wipes the tears that have begun to fall from her own eyes, and slowly makes her way towards him, pain weighing heavily on her chest as she stops a few feet short of him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oliver?” She whispers gently as she bends down, the pain in her chest only tightening as he jolts at the sound, scrambling back with a shake of his head and a tightening of his hold on himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, no, no…” He whispers in a voice that guts Felicity, cutting through her like a knife. She’s seen him in this state before, god knows the both of them are plagued with nightmares and suffer with panic attacks and over the years, Felicity has learned exactly how to best help Oliver through them. Seeing him like this here though is gut-wrenching.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oliver, hey, it’s okay, it’s just me,” Felicity tells him, forcing a small smile onto her face through her tears. She can tell exactly the moment the sound of her voice registers in Oliver’s mind. He freezes, taking a few deep breaths and his sobbing subsides a little. Finally, he lifts his head, looking at her through pained eyes, clouded with the weight of the world. His eyelashes are heavy with tears, so much so that he cannot open his eyes properly. He gasps as he takes her in before his face contorts in disbelief, his shoulders shaking as another sob wracks through him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“F-Felicity?” He questions and the skepticism in his tone is heart-wrenching. He blinks for a moment, reaching up to wipe his tears away and Felicity aches to reach out and do it for him. His shoulders slump in relief as he opens his eyes wider and properly takes her in. There’s still disbelief clouding his expression but he seems more amazed than fearful.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hi.” She counters with a small smile. A sob chokes through her as she speaks the simple word. Despite the circumstances, which are quite possibly the strangest and heaviest she could imagine, it’s still amazing to be looking at him in the flesh again. After months of separation, of being unable to see him and know for herself that he’s okay, to lay her eyes on him is a privilege she will not take for granted.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… I don’t understand.” Oliver gasps, his voice cracking as his eyes search her face. She knows he’s looking for any indication that she’s not real, or not who she says he is, and it breaks her heart to know that they’ve reached a point where that is a necessary and right thing to do.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s me, Oliver, I’m here. I’m going to help you, okay?” She reassures him with a smile, wanting nothing more than to reach out and take his hand. She aches to prove she’s real with her touch, to hold him and kiss him until he believes her. After being separated for so long, her body thrums with a wish to connect to him once more, and the fact that that’s forbidden down here in the depths of his and the Spectre’s memories is tragic.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Help me?” Oliver questions, his grip on himself loosening. He begins to unwind himself from the ball he’d curled himself up into and Felicity feels some of the tightness in her chest loosen along with him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re drowning, my love. The weight of the Spectre’s memories is bearing down on you. You need to remember who </span>
  <em>
    <span>you </span>
  </em>
  <span>are on top of all of that power.” Felicity sighs with a soft tilt of her head, imploring him to listen even if she cannot reach out and touch him in the way she yearns to. Oliver slumps, the tension leaving his body and he shakes his head, tears flooding down his face once more. He looks upwards, taking a deep breath in the way that Felicity knows is his go-to to try and collect himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This… it’s just been so much, Felicity.” He tells her brokenly as he looks back at her, his face contorted in pain, and Felicity’s heart shatters at the agony in his voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’s been through so much. And for what?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They’re no better off than they were before all this started. In fact, they’re </span>
  <em>
    <span>worse. </span>
  </em>
  <span>It’s hard to find the light and hope in that.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But Felicity knows she has to, and she has to hope that they can change this, that they can fight for their family in the way they always do.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know, honey, I know but if we do this, if we get you back to the surface, you can end this.” She reminds him, leaning towards him with determination in her eyes. If he cannot be strong, she will be strong for him, and guide him home.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I can?” He asks and the uncertainty is so painful to see. Oliver is a hero and the fact that he’s never been fully able to recognize that has always pained Felicity. He gives up so much for so many, no more than right now, and the fact that he’s not aware of how much that sacrifice means to those around him breaks her heart.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You have so much power in you, Oliver. You always have. But now? Now you can channel into something incredible, you can bring everyone back.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“William and Mia.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver’s answer is almost instantaneous, his demeanor changing immediately as well. At the thought of saving their children, he lights up, his eyes sparkling with a hope she’s missed seeing in his eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Exactly. You can bring our children back to life, Oliver, create a world worthy of them.” Felicity reminds him, smiling as he sits up properly. He wipes the tears from his cheeks with a nod, taking a moment to breathe, before he looks back to her, a quizzical look on his face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How are you here?” He questions, that amazement slipping into his voice once more and Felicity smiles.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I told you I’d find you, didn’t I?” She counters with a simple shrug of her shoulders, her smile only widening when Oliver lets out a disbelieving scoff.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But here, in the memories of an eternal being?” He presses, his eyebrows raising with an unconvinced shake of his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, you think that promise was limited to our worldly plain?” Felicity teases, quirking her own eyebrow. Oliver sighs, leveling her with a look and Felicity’s smirk softens to a smile. “The Monitor.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver scoffs again, amazement slipping back into his expression as he regards her with a tenderness that she’s missed so desperately. “You just demanded a practical god do your bidding?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m very convincing.” Felicity counters with a preening tilt of her shoulders. Her heart lightens when Oliver chuckles, shaking his head affectionately at her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yes, you are.” His answer is so simple, filled with so much tenderness, affection, and love that it makes Felicity want to cry all over again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Good lord, how she’s missed him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Suddenly, Oliver reaches out towards her and her heart stops for a moment as she has to shunt herself back and away from him. The heartbroken and despondent look that crosses his face as she does so guts her to her core.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You can’t touch me.” She breaks the news and he freezes, the pain on his face contorting into confusion as he shakes his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, what?” He asks, blinking and Felicity knows he thinks he didn’t hear her right.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>How she wishes that were true.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>How she wishes she could hold him, feel his arms around her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They gain so much comfort from each other’s arms, comfort that they desperately need right now, comfort they must be denied of.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The Monitor… he said that if we touch that you’ll be returned to your state before the Spectre inhabited you,” Felicity explains, her voice soft as her heart clenches painfully at having to speak the words.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll be dead.” Oliver states simply, his shoulders slumping in defeat and Felicity swallows thickly, sniffling as she nods her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And the entire multiverse will remain so too.” She adds with a long sigh. Oliver answers with one of his own, his hands rising to drag over his face and hair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Torn away from you and our daughter and now I can’t even hold my wife after seeing her for the first time in months?” He questions, his voice choking as he finishes and Felicity sighs sympathetically. She feels his pain, there’s nothing she wants more than to hold him and reassure him that everything will be okay, but she can’t.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She scoots closer once more, wrapping her arms around her knees to stop herself from reaching out to caress him. Oliver looks to her, that same fearful and despondent look in his eyes, and Felicity musters her best soft smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, you and me? We’re bigger than all of this. This is right now. We through this and we have forever, Oliver. Your want to help everyone and to make the world a better place is one of the reasons I love you so much. You won’t stand for injustice and you fight against it for that reason alone. You are the most selfless person I know. There’s a reward for that at the end of all us this, there has to be.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s not.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oliver…” Felicity sighs, her head tilting as she regards him gently but Oliver merely shakes his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No. I literally have the memories of one of the most ancient beings in the multiverse right now. There’s no reward for this. The Spectre is a burden, a job for life until the spirit chooses a new host.” Oliver explains, the lost look in his eyes deepening and Felicity sighs, her need to reach out to him only growing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Then we’ll figure out a way. We always do. That’s what we do, Oliver, we fight. I am not done fighting for you and our family and you better not be either.” Felicity reminds him, her eyes narrowing a little as she regards him, grateful when she elicits the smallest quip of his lips.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m not. That’s what all of this is for. So that you and the kids can live and be happy.” Oliver answers, a pleading look in his eyes and Felicity shakes her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her sweet, self-sacrificing, pine tree of a husband.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oliver, how do you not know by now that all the kids and I need to be happy is you?” She questions simply, raising her eyebrows as she looks at him with a soft smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver frowns for a moment, swallowing thickly before shaking his head with a long sigh. “I-“ He looks skyward once more, closing his eyes as breathes deeply, letting the tension out of his body.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, come on. Come with me.” Felicity smiles, standing and beckoning for him to follow her as she begins to walk back the way she came.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Felicity…” Oliver sighs as he stands, regarding her with a pleading look but Felicity just shakes her head, beckoning for him to follow her. He does so begrudgingly, his face softening as he takes in his childhood memories lining the path they walk.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Certain memories are more vibrant than others. Felicity notes as she leads him through his childhood that they are the ones that Oliver reacts to most vividly as well. He positively grins at the iridescent memory of him holding Thea just after she was born. She cannot help but smile too as she watches a ten-year-old Oliver hold his baby sister, batting a curious Tommy away for fear that he’s being too forceful with the new-born. She tears up as the child version of Oliver bends over, pressing a kiss to the baby’s forehead with a whisper of a promise to always protect her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“My Speedy.” The Oliver next to her whispers with a smile and Felicity smiles as she turns to him with a tender expression.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“See? Thea’s the first one, but you’ve helped so many people, protected them, and </span>
  <em>
    <span>loved </span>
  </em>
  <span>them. And they all love you too, so much.” Felicity counters, watching as Oliver sighs, shaking his head with a thick swallow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is all too much.” He whispers, so quiet Felicity almost doesn’t catch it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You need it and I’m right here.” She reminds him, smiling at him when he looks over at her. He stares at her for a long moment, his expression a complicated mix of pain and longing, but he finally swallows and nods. “Come on.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They continue down the corridor through Oliver’s memories. The memories of the havoc Tommy and Oliver used to cause make both husband and wife smile affectionately. Felicity stays silent as she walks through Oliver’s teenage years, a soft smile on her face as she watches him meet Laurel and the two of them begin their relationship. Oliver encourages her to quicken her pace after that, skipping through his late teenage years and his early twenties. There are few glowing memories there, most of them are the same bright color but with little of the tones that tugged at Felicity’s nostalgia like the earlier ones had.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The ones that do brighten the journey are of Tommy and Thea mostly, though there are a few moments with Laurel that make Felicity’s heartache for the memory of her friend that she so dearly misses. She and Black Siren have their own dynamic but it’s not the same.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>All brightness disappears as they reach the Gambit. Felicity feels her heart contort as she watches Oliver watch his father, then Shado, and so many of his other friends fall. They make it through his time fighting Slade and his arrival in Hong Kong.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Curiously for Felicity, however, there’s one memory, a few down from where they’re stood, that is glowing brighter than any they’ve passed before now. Felicity wracks her mind, trying to think of what the memory could possibly be. Oliver does not have a lot of happy memories from his time away, in fact, he’s always described them as five years where nothing good happened.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>To see a memory that he clearly treasures glowing so brightly within the middle of them sparks her curiosity.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>What she’s not expecting, is to see herself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>To her knowledge, her and Oliver’s first meeting was in her cubicle in the IT department in 2012. But she’s staring at herself in what she knows is 2010 with Oliver watching her in Moira’s office from a hiding place. Her mouth drops open, turning to look at her husband, who is watching the scene with the softest expression. He doesn’t turn to look at her until the version of her in the memory mutters ‘you’re cute’. It causes his smile to spread into a grin, tender and affectionate, and that bright smile turns a little sheepish when he turns to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I certainly wasn’t expecting to be surprised down here.” She smirks when he doesn’t offer an explanation and Oliver blushes in an entirely adorable manner. He takes a deep breath, looking back towards the memory that is glowing so brightly it’s practically thrumming with its own energy.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You lightened my life from the very beginning, I’ve always been open about that. But this… this is a memory that’s always been mine. You reminded me of the pure lightness of humanity. It got me through some of my darkest times.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His voice holds such a reverence, it shocks Felicity for a moment. She knows how much Oliver loves her, he’s never been one to hold that back. But to hear him speak of her with such respect and deep affection clear in his tone, it takes her aback to realize just how deep that love runs. It strengthens her resolve to prove to him that his unrelenting and implacable is just as deeply reciprocated and that he is irreplaceable in her and their family’s life.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Come on then.” Felicity smiles, content to allow Oliver to keep that memory as his own.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They continue down the corridor, not lingering on the rest of his time away. There are no more bright moments, just more suffering and pain and Felicity can see Oliver’s shoulders release with relief once they reach his homecoming.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Felicity slows her pace, watching Oliver smile as he watches the memories of reuniting with his friends and family. They move slowly through the weeks after his return, lingering for a moment to smile at the memory of Oliver meeting John for the first time. Felicity giggles at the one of him throwing himself out the car to get away from John’s watch and Oliver smiles too, an affectionate look returning to his eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They reach another memory, glowing just as bright as the memory from 2010. Felicity feels her heart glow as she watches Oliver in the memory approach her cubicle and hand over the bullet-ridden laptop. She chuckles as she watches her former self immediately distrust his story, though she stands by the fact that ‘I spilled a latte on it’ is one of the worst excuses he ever used on her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You see that girl? She’s existing but she’s not living.” Felicity tells her husband softly before continuing down the path and gesturing to his memories from just a few months later. All around them are memories of her first few days and weeks as a part of Team Arrow. Felicity cannot help the smile that spreads across her face as she watches herself, finding a home and a family with that Foundry. “Now look at that, look at her… Oliver, you gave my life a purpose, a hope that life could be more than just going to a job that allowed me to blend in. And look around, even in these early stages, you were having an influence on so many of us. John, Laurel, Tommy, Thea, Roy… all of us have you to thank.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You all did it yourselves.” Oliver shakes his head dismissively but Felicity holds strong, shaking her head at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But we couldn’t have done it without you.” She explains simply with a tender smile, watching as Oliver closes his eyes for a moment, clearly taking in her words. “Come on.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She begins to walk again, leading him past their year fighting Slade. They linger for a moment at their interactions with the Count and Tockman, Felicity smiling as she thinks of how simultaneously nervous and comfortable Oliver used to make her. Those small interactions in the Foundry, his hand on hers and his caress to her cheek, was what she lived for. It’s oddly heartwarming to see them now, especially the way in which they glow so brightly as clearly some of Oliver’s fondest memories as well.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They continue on, taking in the moments that have defined them along the way. Their first kiss in the hospital after JJ was born, Oliver leaving to fight Ra’s, his return, their road trip. That entire summer glows so brightly, the strength of Oliver’s affection for those memories forcing Felicity to wince with the strength of the light they emit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They take in their house in Ivy Town, returning to the city, Oliver’s mayoral campaign. Felicity’s heart clenches as she watches Oliver interact with William for the first time, playing with his action figures in his bedroom at Samantha’s house. It’s an incredibly bittersweet feeling, to know that she’s watching where their issues that lasted years began, but it’s still an adorable sight and one she can appreciate with the benefit of hindsight.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Re-watching Oliver’s proposal brings a tear to Felicity’s eye and when she looks back towards her Oliver, she can see that he too is crying. They continue down the path, both staying silent as they pass through the memories of Felicity’s accident, Oliver sending William away, and their consequent breakup. Seeing things from Oliver’s side, the nights he spent alone in the bunker, crying for what they had lost, breaks Felicity’s heart and she’s crying full out as they make it past their drunken night in the bunker to their fight against Chase.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The memories brighten once more after the island. The small leaps Oliver made in connecting with William, the long conversations between he and Felicity on the phone that would take them from when they finished in the bunker to when they both had to wake up. One of the brightest of the bunch is Felicity’s first interaction with William, it glowing like a beacon within the other bright memories around it. Felicity grins, remembering how nervous she had been to interact properly with Oliver’s son but how immediately connected to him she had felt. From that very first tutoring session, Felicity had known she would do anything for that darling boy and that is true to this day.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Thea’s awakening from her coma and her meeting William for the first time shine brightly, and Felicity smiles at the sight of it, her heart aching for those gentle moments with their son once more. The memories of their fight against Earth-X and the horrors they found there are almost outshone by the glowing aura around both their wedding in the park and the following reception back home in Star City. Felicity sighs contently as she watches the memories of that wonderful night, laughing at them dancing with William and smashing cake into each other’s faces with glee. She remembers how perfect that night felt, like it was the culmination of their story and their reward for all their hardships over the years. Watching it glow so brightly within Oliver’s memories makes her heart glow as well, her affection and love for him threatening to overwhelm her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Making their way through his memories of his time in prison is difficult and heart-wrenching but worth it for how brightly the memory of their reunion shines. Felicity smiles with a light blush at the memory of their anniversary and Oliver chuckles as he urges her forward through the year. William’s decision to leave is hard to re-watch, even more so considering how close it is to the blinding light of Felicity telling Oliver she’s pregnant with Mia.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Their discovery of Emiko’s allegiance, their semi-defeat of the Ninth Circle, their move to Bloomfield and then…</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Mia.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Sweet, wonderful, perfect baby Mia.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Those few months in the cabin are so bright, the path is filled with so much light as Oliver’s warmth for the memories of the time spent with his baby girl is almost overwhelming. Felicity feels herself start to cry once more as she takes them in. The sight of Oliver with Mia, with either of their children, is something that has never failed to warm her heart, and to be surrounded by images of it now is overpoweringly emotional. Everywhere she turns there’s Oliver falling asleep with Mia in his arms, or trying to make her smile, or making her fly above his head, or watching her as she sleeps with the most awed expression on his face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She turns to look at her husband, who is crying as well as he takes in the scenes around him. His expression seems to get impossibly softer everywhere he turns and Felicity aches to reach out and hold his hand, to share in that joy and love with him. Knowing that she can’t, it makes everything harder, especially as they approach the memory Felicity’s been dreading reaching.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She cannot stop the sob that wracks its way through her body as she relives saying goodbye to Oliver. She nods along with almost every word, believing her words to her core to this day. Her heart simultaneously glows and aches as she realizes that she’s managed to fulfill her promise. She’s found him. And she knows that their love can conquer anything, that she was right when she told him that it is bigger than any universe, it just hurts to watch knowing the pain and suffering they both experience from it. Oliver is crying heavily as well when Felicity glances back at him, tears running down his cheeks like a river that she wishes she could wipe away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That same gut-wrenching feeling she had the first time she watched him walk away returns once more as she witnesses the end of the memory. It’s like all the breath has been stolen from her lungs and the light has been put out around her. the memory follows Oliver, so it doesn’t show her falling to her knees or the way she remained there sobbing for hours until Mia’s cries finally forced her to collect herself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But Felicity remembers it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Just as vividly as if it were yesterday.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Seeing it again, it just strengthens Felicity’s resolve all over again. How she felt when Oliver left, it was a similar feeling to how she felt when the Monitor told her he was dead, and she won’t go through that again. They’re going to find a way to make this work, for them all to be together.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Screw the Book of Oa and the Monitor.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Felicity won’t be taking no for an answer this time.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hon…” She whispers, drawing Oliver’s attention away from the memory and back to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He looks at her with tear-filled eyes and an expression that’s almost as lost as when she first found him at the other end of the path. Lingering here isn’t helpful, they need to keep moving.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Come on, let’s keep moving.” She tells him with a small smile that she hopes is reassuring because she can’t muster much more. Oliver swallows thickly, glancing back at the memory for a moment before he nods, following her as she begins to walk down the path once more.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It’s intriguing for Felicity to see exactly what Oliver was doing with the Monitor. She was keeping tags on him of course so she knew where he was and the general gist of what he was up to, but seeing it first hand is interesting. It only validates her point that the Monitor appears to be incapable of doing anything himself though, the way he was sending Oliver around like a lacky and not even telling him why.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Felicity watches his trip to Earth-2, his time in Hong Kong working with Tatsu again, and his return to Nanda Parbat accompanied by his reunion with Thea. His time with his sister is bright but it’s overshadowed by the memory just along from it that brings tears to Felicity’s eyes all over again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She cannot help the amazed gasp as she watches Oliver meet William, Mia, and Connor from the future. Their children are so tall, so grown, so beautiful. They’re heroes in their own right and Felicity is so amazed by them. She’s always known that they would go on to do incredible things. William is so intelligent and kind and even Mia at her tender age is such an astonishing baby. To see it before her is something else entirely.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She cannot imagine how Oliver must have felt experiencing it first-hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh my… look at them.” She gasps out, moving down the path a little to take in the memories of Oliver training Mia, William coming out to him, all of them cooking in their old apartment… they all glow with such incredible light and Felicity basks in it, letting the warmth fill her up as she watches her adult children interact with her husband.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Meeting them was… my god… what an experience.” Oliver sighs amazedly as he approaches her. He too is tearing up again as he looks around at the memories surrounding them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re so beautiful,” Felicity replies with a smile, her eyes lingering affectionately on a memory where the siblings are teasing each other whilst Oliver watches them with a smile on his face.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They’re incredible. William is just so successful and funny and smart and kind and Mia… Mia is… wow. She’s amazing. She has this spark to her that’s just unique and wonderful. They’re all the best parts of you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver’s reverence when he speaks of their children makes Felicity melt. He’s such an incredible father and his love for their kids is one of the most incredible parts of him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And they’re all the best parts of you, my love.” She replies just as softly, her eyes shining with tears as she regards him softly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Getting the chance to spend that time with them was invaluable. I will be forever thankful for that.” Oliver whispers, a bittersweet smile painting over his lips as he looks around them at the memories.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It breaks Felicity’s heart. She can tell by his tone and the way he’s looking at the scenes that he thinks this is the last time he’ll get to see the kids this grown… the last time he’ll get to see the kids, period.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re going to spend so much more time with them,” Felicity promises, her tears clouding her vision as she watches them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver sighs, looking back at her with a heart-wrenching expression. “Felicity…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, Oliver. We’re going to change this. I have lived far too long without you, I am not accepting twenty years. Our family needs you and you need it. You and me? We’re a team, we always have been. Screw everyone else, after everything we’ve been through, we should get to be selfish right now.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Her voice grows more manic as she speaks, unable to hold back her emotions. This is too much. She doesn’t know what to do but they have to do </span>
  <em>
    <span>something. </span>
  </em>
  <span>Her tears spill over and flood down her cheeks, her body shaking as she loses the last shred of control she had been holding onto. The thought of Oliver being so sure that he will never get to see their family again is just too much for her to take and it makes her so angry and the Monitor and the universe. He’s sacrificed so much, given so much back, and he should see some retribution for that.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Proper, actually fulfilling, retribution.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Honey,” Oliver whispers softly and before Felicity can truly process what’s happening, he steps towards her and wraps his arms tightly around her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Felicity immediately freezes, the Monitor’s warning spinning on a loop in her mind. Oliver cannot be touching her, if he does that means…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oliver…” She winces but he just shushes her, holding her tightly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Slave to do anything else, Felicity leans into the affection, wrapping her arms around him just as tightly. She breathes in the scent of him, reveling in the feeling of safety she’s been denied for so long. It’s a feeling only Oliver’s arms can provide and one that Felicity has so dearly missed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Suddenly, there’s a blinding light, brighter than any of the memories they’ve traversed, and Felicity turns her head back into Oliver’s chest to shield her eyes. It’s too bright for her to look at, effervescent in its glow, and Oliver’s hand reaches up, cradling her head to hold it steady and protect her eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What? What’s happening?” She questions, burrowing closer to him and fisting her hands into the material of his suit across his back. She squeezes her eyes shut, the strength of the light painful even without looking. She doesn’t know what’s going on, but she can tell it’s something big.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She just prays it’s not the result of the warning she was given.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She can’t give him up now. She won’t.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’ll see. Hold onto me tight. I won’t let you go now.” Oliver whispers to her, holding her impossibly closer and Felicity squeezes him back. She doesn’t know what’s happening, but she trusts him with everything in her. If he says they’ll be okay, she believes him.</span>
</p><p>
  
</p><hr/><p> </p><p>
  <span>It takes a few moments, but the light begins to diminish. Felicity remains pressed up against Oliver’s chest, unwilling to let him go in case this is the last time she gets to hold him. When she feels him start to pull away, a sob wracks through her and she holds him tightly, shaking her head against his chest.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Shh, it’s okay. I’m not going anywhere. You did it.” Oliver tells her softly, his hands coming up to gently frame her face as he tenderly urges her to look up into his eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Taking a deep breath, she blinks her eyes open, baffled as she realizes they’re no longer in the timeline of Oliver’s memories but on a barren-looking plain surrounded by mountains. It reminds Felicity of a little of the area surrounding Nanda Parbat, though there’s nothing living here at all.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I did… what did I do?” Felicity questions with a frown, looking back up at Oliver as his words register. He’s smiling down at her with an unbelievable expression on his face, that reverence shining in his eyes once more, and it takes Felicity’s breath away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You gave me the strength I needed. Your belief in me, your unwavering hope for something better for our family, it was exactly what I needed to fully accept the Spectre into me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver’s face morphs into a grin as he speaks, pride shining in his eyes, and Felicity gasps at his words. She can’t understand it but she’s so grateful for it. He’s here, he’s alive, and that’s worth more than any words can express.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“But the Monitor…” She frowns, the gravity of the godlike being’s warning still weighing on her mind. They touched, did the one thing the Monitor warned against, the thing that should’ve left Oliver dead.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But he’s here, clearly alive, and apparently fully merged with the spirit of the Spectre.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He clearly didn’t count for Felicity Smoak,” Oliver smirks at her and Felicity gasps out a disbelieving laugh, unable to wrap her head around all of this but so, </span>
  <em>
    <span>so, </span>
  </em>
  <span>grateful for it, nonetheless.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So you’re… we’re going to be okay.” Felicity gasps, amazed at how incredible those simple words sound.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s still the small issue of the multiverse being destroyed but yes. You’ve given me the strength I need to change that. You and I can rebirth the multiverse.” Oliver chuckles, smiling down proudly at her but Felicity frowns once more at his words.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Me? But I’m not a paragon.” She reminds him with a quizzical frown but Oliver’s smile doesn’t waver. It’s so wonderful to see the smile on his face, even if it’s a little disconcerting for their usual dynamic to be switched. She’s not used to Oliver being the one more in the know, though she supposes with his new powers, it’s something she’s going to have to get used to.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, but you are the connection to my power. The power of the Spectre is tied to my love for you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Felicity can’t help but gasp at that statement.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That’s… wow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oliver!” They both jump at the sound of voices and Felicity’s eyebrows skyrocket in surprise as she sees the group of heroes heading their way. Barry, Kara, Sara, and Kara’s friend, J’onn she recognizes. She knows one of the others is Kate Kane, who Oliver teamed up with last year, though she’s never actually met the woman. The others she doesn’t know, though she guesses one is Ryan Choi and the other is the Kryptonian she read of in the Book of Oa. “Felicity?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It’s Barry that asks, looking at her in shock. She supposes it must be very odd to see her there, at… </span>
  <em>
    <span>wherever they are… </span>
  </em>
  <span>after everything that’s happened.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Where are we? What’s going on?” Kara questions, looking around them with a curious expression, and Oliver sighs, quirking his lips a little before he turns to face the group. He keeps one arm around her but straightens his shoulders, looking suddenly domineering and in charge, as opposed to the proud puppy-like expression he’d had on his face when looking at her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“The dawn of time. It is the one place the multiverse can be restarted.” Oliver answers simply and Felicity frowns at the answer. For the birthplace of the universe, she’d expect a little more life, but she supposes beggars can’t be choosers.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A do-over.” Sara comments, amazement and reverence in her voice and Felicity sends her old friend a smile as she nods. “What do we need to do?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Buy me time. Fight. I’ll handle everything else.” Oliver states simply and the others all straighten, nodding their heads in regard to the order. All except Barry.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Fight? That’s all you need us to do?” He questions and Felicity sends a smile his way as Oliver turns extremely serious.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hold them off.” He states, his voice slightly harsher than it was before. Barry nods but all of their eyes widen as there’s a loud noise.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Turning towards the sound, Felicity feels her heart leap into her chest at the sight of what looks like a hoard of dementors making their way towards them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver turns back to the heroes, nodding at them, before he looks down at Felicity with a soft expression. “Come on, honey.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He scoops her towards him and before Felicity knows it, they’re stood on top of the mountain overlooking the scene. She has no idea if it was superspeed or teleportation. It certainly didn’t feel like Barry’s superspeed does, but she’s also never experienced teleportation either. It’s so odd to think that this is their new reality.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>All thoughts of that, however, go out of her head when there’s the sound of heavy breathing approaching from behind them. Oliver looks down at her and Felicity can read the plea to remain calm and quiet in his eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You humans have such hubris. You think you can change a long-foreseen sequence of events. After 10 thousand years, I have finally won.” The Anti-Monitor approaches them and Felicity feels her blood run cold. He’s imposing, for sure, though Felicity cannot help but feel safe with her husband next to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Doesn’t look like much of a win to me.” She can’t resist speaking, looking around at the complete lack of life and warmth in this place. What does this guy want to do? Rule over nothing? It sounds pretty miserable to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Only death is eternal, only I am eternal.” The Anti-Monitor continues as if she had never spoken coming to stand in front of them with a hubristic look to him as he regards them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver doesn’t seem phased, so Felicity forces herself not to be either, taking a deep breath.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s where you’re wrong.” Her husband starts to speak, stepping forward slightly so that he’s between Felicity and the Anti-Monitor. “There’s one force that can outshine even death itself, something that’s bigger than even the friggin’ universe. And it’s certainly bigger than you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He reaches back then, grabbing Felicity’s hand and tugging her forward gently until they’re face to face. Grasping her face in his hands, he pulls her towards him into a kiss.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Felicity is confused but that melts away as Oliver deepens their connection. She can’t concentrate on anything other than the feel of his lips against hers, guiding her in a deep and passionate embrace that she returns with just as much heat and fervor. It’s a kiss as earth-shattering as their first, one that Felicity can feel warming its way through her entire body until she’s fully encompassed by it. There is nothing but Oliver and the feeling of him wrapping his way around her in the way he’s already wrapped around every inch of her heart and soul.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They part with a loud gasp and Oliver urges Felicity to curl into his chest once more as he tilts his head back and shoots a beam of light towards the sky. It’s so bright, pure and glowing, and a shot of golden light emits from all around them as well. Felicity keeps her head buried and her eyes shut, but she smiles as she does so, knowing that this is it, they’ve done it, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Oliver’s </span>
  </em>
  <span>done it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver stumbles backward, falling to the floor and taking Felicity with him as he breaks the connection. She lets out a slight squeal at the unexpected trip but Oliver catches her easily, laying back on the ground and holding close to his chest.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The Anti-Monitor is gone, nowhere to be seen, and the dementor-like creatures the paragons were fighting have vanished with him. The heroes crowd them, asking them if they’re okay, but Oliver just holds up a hand and nods. He turns his head, pressing a kiss to Felicity’s forehead and she frowns, looking between the paragons and Oliver in confusion.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, it’s okay. We did it.” Oliver tells her and gestures upwards to the sky.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Felicity gasps as she follows his gaze, looking up to see the most beautiful pool of light making its way towards them. It’s silver, sparkling, and so enticing to look at. Bright and beautiful, like the purest and clearest water Felicity has ever seen.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s next?” She questions as she looks back to her husband, ignoring the paragons who are all staring at the pool in amazement.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I think that’s for us to decide.” He replies with a smile and Felicity sighs contently, leaning back against him and staring up at their new world as it descends upon them. She feels nothing but total bliss as Oliver’s arms wrap around her and whilst tomorrow is still unknown, Felicity has so much hope that it’s going to be far better than yesterday.</span>
</p><p> </p><hr/><p>
  
</p><p>
  <span>“Fliss? Felicity? Please wake up.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Felicity groans at the sound of the familiar voice, cuddling down into the comfort of the warm sheets and pillows. She’s so tired, she really doesn’t want to wake up, but there’s a voice in the back of her mind telling her she really should.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Yawning loudly, she opens her eyes and sits up in bed, her head throbbing as everything suddenly comes rushing back to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>But it’s not just everything that happened with Oliver, the Monitor, and the Anti-Monitor…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… What?” Felicity frowns, disoriented as she looks around the unfamiliar room. She takes the glasses that the speaker hands her, blinking in surprise as everything comes into focus.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The architecture is far grander than anywhere she’s ever lived before, with wooden gilding, a four-poster bed, and a fancy chandelier. However, at the same time, this room is familiar to Felicity. There’s a sense of warmth and home she garners from it. As she looks around, memories she doesn’t quite remember, but that feels extremely important to her, flood her mind.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She has images of Oliver, Mia, and William in here, all of them cuddled in the bed she’s currently sat it. Far less family-friendly memories flood her mind as well, nights spent with Oliver in this bed, the two of them wrapped up together in each other’s arms.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She looks to the source of the voice, her eyes widening at the sight of her teenage son who is watching her with a concerned expression. </span>
  <em>
    <span>“William?”</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry, I know you wanted to sleep in this morning after all your meetings at Smoak Tech yesterday but Mia’s being so fussy. She won’t calm down for Grandma or me or even Uncle Tommy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As William speaks, Felicity is hit with even more memories. Moira Queen, holding a baby she knows to be Mia, and Tommy, someone Felicity barely knew, laughing over the dinner table and ruffling William’s hair.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I… where’s your father?” She finds herself asking, her head swimming with the memories of what seems to be two separate lives. She can feel a headache coming on, but she knows she needs coffee and to talk to Oliver.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Probably the latter first actually but also… coffee.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“He went out to grab some more fruit. Mia wouldn’t take the bottle but she would eat some banana we mashed up. But we only had a quarter of one left.” William explains and Felicity winces, nodding her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Right, okay, I’m coming.” She reassures her son, taking the robe he hands her to pull on over the singlet she’s wearing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I really am sorry, Fliss.” William sighs as Felicity stands from the bed and she smiles reassuringly, running a hand through her messy hair. She winces at the knots she can feel, reaching for a band to just pull it up on top of her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Don’t worry, sweetheart. You sign away your rights to lie-ins for at least a year when you have a baby, I’m pretty sure it’s in the contract.” Felicity reassures her son, smiling at him. The dominance of her original timeline in her mind, the one where she hasn’t seen William in almost a year, makes her heart ache. To see him here, in what she knows to be their home, makes her happier than she could ever put into words.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Still, I should be able to look after her. I’m her big brother.” William sighs as they make their way down the stairs and Felicity melts, shaking her head with an affectionate smile.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, you are so incredible with her, you’re the best big brother in the whole multiverse,” Felicity reassures him honestly, tugging him towards her and planting a kiss on his temple. William groans in a characteristic teenage way but Felicity spies the proud smile on his face as she pulls away.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They make their way through the hallway and down the hall to the kitchen.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Felicity feels very odd.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>To half of her, Queen Mansion is a large, intimidating place that symbolized the fact that she only fit into one part of Oliver’s life. To the other, it’s her house, the place she and Oliver have turned into a loving home filled with memories of love and laughter for their entire family. The four of them live so happily here, with Moira having moved into the annex that they renovated two years ago when her mother in law offered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That duality is confusing her, making that headache grow, but all of that goes out the window when she hears Mia cries.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Rushing into the kitchen, she takes in the scene before her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Moira and Tommy are stood at the other end of the island. Mia is in her uncle’s arms, her small face bright red as she screams loudly. Both Tommy and Moira look rather overwhelmed and expressions of relief cross their faces when they spot Felicity.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Good morning, little miss here is not having one.” Tommy greets, walking the baby over to her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thanks, Tommy. Hi, baby. Oh, I know, it’s okay. Look at me, Mia, look at Mommy.” Felicity coos, taking the baby into her arms and bouncing her a little to try and cheer her up. Once Mia does as asked, she gently parts the baby’s lips with her fingers and winces at the bright red inflammation of her little gums. “Yup, it’s her teeth again.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She declares it with a nod, instinctively moving to the freezer and pulling out one of Mia’s teething toys. The baby begins to settle once she has it in her mouth, cuddling into Felicity with a soft sigh as her sobs subside. Felicity smiles, wiping the tears from her rounded cheeks and pressing a kiss to the top of her head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Why didn’t we think to check that?” Tommy questions with a frown and Felicity smiles reassuringly at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s alright. It’s probably why she didn’t want the bottle.” Felicity explains with a smile, gently cradling the back of Mia’s head and smiling at William as he climbs onto one of the island stools. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“And here we thought she was just being fussy,” Moira comments with a smile, making her way over to mother and daughter. She rubs an affectionate hand over Mia’s back before leaning in and pressing a kiss to Felicity’s cheek. “Good morning, sweetheart.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Morning, Moira,” Felicity replies with a smile, forcing herself to push down the part of her who’s last memory of her mother-in-law was their altercation over Felicity revealing the truth about Thea.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m sorry we dragged you away from your lie-in over a teething ring.” The matriarch smiles, cooing at Mia when the baby turns her head to look at her.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s okay, though coffee would make up for it.” Felicity teases with a smile and Moira chuckles, nodding her head with a wink as she heads to the coffee machine.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“How about some pancakes as well?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A wide grin spreads over Felicity’s face at the sound of Oliver’s voice.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He’s one thing that hasn’t changed. Through both sets of memories in her head, Oliver has always remained Oliver. He’s the love of her life, it’s as simple as that.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Dad’s back!” William grins and Oliver smiles at his son, sliding the bag of groceries he carries across the island towards him. He uses some of his powers to do so, not touching the bag as he sends it William’s way, and the teenager grins excitedly, clearly thinking it incredibly cool.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Tommy, when did you get here?” Oliver questions, smiling at his friend from across the island.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Just after you left, I was coming by to tell Moira all about the newest expansion of the club when I walked in on the little princess making an awful lot of noise. Yes, you were, that was you.” Tommy laughs, wiggling his fingers in Mia’s direction to attract her attention. The baby looks over at him, reaching towards him with her hand that isn’t holding the teething ring. It makes her uncle laugh, shaking his head amusedly. “Butter wouldn’t melt, I swear.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver chuckles, smiling at William and his mom, before he walks over to Felicity with a soft smile. He presses a kiss to Mia’s head before he scoops her out of Felicity’s arms. Moira takes her willingly, the baby happy to be in her grandmother’s arms now that she has something to soothe her poor gum.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oliver turns back to Felicity, his eyes sparkling as he cups her face with his hands. “Are you okay? I wanted to be with you when you woke up but William came in telling me there was something wrong with Mia and I…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He trails off, the conflict evident on his face, and Felicity chuckles, leaning into the comfort of his thumbs gently brushing against her cheek.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It’s okay, I’m fine, more than, actually. A little disorientated but I’m certainly not complaining.” Felicity reassures him, glancing over his shoulder to where Moira is holding Mia down by her brother and William is pressing kisses to his baby sister’s temple.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll walk you through all the details of it later?” Oliver tells her with a grin, clearly amazed himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Please do.” Felicity nods with a chuckle and Oliver laughs too. Their eyes meet and their smiles soften, both of them reveling in what they’ve built.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>This universe… this was their doing. They created it, made a home for their family where they can all be happy… together.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I love you so much.” Oliver whispers, the reverence shining in his eyes once more and Felicity grins, her eyes shining with tears.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I love you more than the friggin’ universe.” She replies just as quietly. She rises onto her toes, pressing their lips together in the sweetest of kisses. It isn’t filled with heat or passion but it’s soft and gentle and it holds the promise of forever, which they now get to enjoy together.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Right, who wants pancakes?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And as Felicity watches her family all together, laughing and teasing one another in a way that she wouldn’t have thought possible yesterday, she feels a hope for the future that she hasn’t felt in such a long time. She knows that Oliver can now look forward to a future as the Spectre, hero, and savior of the multiverse, but most importantly as Oliver Queen, son, brother, husband, and father.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>And it is that thought that fills her heart with light.</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
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